Hearty Beef Soup - Souper Sunday!!

I made this soup last weekend and it's back for another week!  It was that good. 

When I made it last weekend, I took some over to my friends to share.....by the time I drove the 5 minutes back to my house, this picture was posted on Facebook with a thank you.  It was that good.

1 lb stewing beef;

2 tbsp. bacon fat

4 cups beef stock

1 cup onion, chopped;

1 cup celery, chopped;

3 carrots, peeled and chopped;

1 28oz can diced tomatoes;

½ tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped;

½ tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped;

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste;

In a large saucepan over a medium-high heat, combine the onions, celery, and carrots as well as the cooking fat. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

 

Add the beef to the saucepan, followed by the tomatoes, beef stock, rosemary and thyme. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cover the saucepan and cook for about one hour, allowing the stew to simmer. Stir a few times during the cooking process.

Remove the lid and cook uncovered for about 45 minutes.

I boiled white potato's separately and add them when served for my husband.  This keeps the starchy potato stuff out of the soup and keeps it Paleo.  This photo has them in it along with some delicious garlic bread from Kiedrowskis Bakery.
 
http://paleodietlifestyle.com/hearty-beef-stew/

Creamy Crockpot Chicken and Tomato Soup - Paleo

SOUPER SUNDAY - Soup number two

http://rivernorthpaleo.blogspot.com/2012/03/creamy-crockpot-chicken-and-tomato-soup.html


This was an all day soup but worth the wait.  I first followed the recipe but was not happy with the flavor.  To me it was to sweet from the coconut milk.  I let it simmer about three hours and still didn't like the flavor.  Considering I had 7 chicken breasts invested in this soup I was determined to save it.  So I went on the search for coconut tomato chicken soup recipes and found a few that had ingredients I thought would help.  So I took a risk and added some spices and a green pepper.  

Perfection!!!
Creamy Crockpot Chicken and Tomato Soup

7 skinless boneless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons Italian Seasoning
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
2 14 oz. can of coconut milk (full fat), shake before opening can to avoid separation
2 14 oz. can diced tomatoes and juice
2 cups of chicken broth
1 small can of tomato paste
1 small can of tomato sauce ( I didn't have spaghetti sauce as suggested in the recipe)
Sea Salt and pepper to taste

Put all the above ingredients into the crock-pot, cook for 9 hours on low.

 

I added one green pepper - diced

1/2 teas each, cumin, coriander and cayenne pepper

 

After 9 hours take two forks and shred the chicken and mix back into soup.  

Recipe adapted from Everyday Paleo

Pumpkin Banana Bread - Paleo

This time of year I love pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin anything. So having a new lifestyle of eating has caused some challenge with enjoying my favorite fall treats.  So I went on a search for yet another Paleo "bread".

http://nutritiontransitions.blogspot.com/2013/10/october-pumpkin-series-paleo-pumpkin.html

It was easy to mix up and bake.

It's more like a cake then a bread.  The flavor is really good.  I might try using egg in the next batch to see if I can get it to stick together better.  I also might use more pumpkin.  It's dry.

But....the flavor is good and when heated it's really good.

Paleo Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

2/3 cup coconut flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or ginger, nutmeg, etc. will also do)

1/2 cup pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin

2-3 small very ripened bananas

1/4 cup honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup almond milk

1/2 cup nuts or raisins (optional, I sprinkled some pecans on top)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine dry ingredient (coconut flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice).

Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl (pumpkin, bananas, honey, vanilla, almond milk) and mix until smooth.

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well.

Spray pan with coconut oil or line with parchment paper.

Spoon batter into bread pan and sprinkle pecans (if desired) on top.

Cook bread 35-45 minutes  

Cauliflower Soup - Souper Sundays!!

What a wonderful fall day.  The sun was warm, the air cold, it was just perfect.  I felt super rested with an extra hour of sleep from day light savings change.  After making breakfast, we took the dog for a walk at the local Metro Park.  He loves going for walks and so do we!  We stopped at the stand for what will probably be the last of local produce.  Acorn squash, some leaf lettuce, spaghetti squash, peppers, radishes and a few jalapenos.  I couldn't wait to get home and use some of it.

We decided during the fall/winter months I'd plan to make soup every Sunday.  We'll call it SOUPER SUNDAYS!  Today I planned out three different soups.  This is the first of the three I made.

 

I had a head of cauliflower from last week I needed to use so it didn't go to waste. As always I went to Google.com and typed in Paleo cauliflower soup.  Several choices came up but I decided to make this one.

http://www.paleolifestylemagazine.com/cauliflower-soup/

(These are my photos...I'm getting pretty good don't  you think?)

First I had to roast the cauliflower.   I didn't have whole gloves of garlic so I just sprinkled some minced garlic in with the EEOV before I roasted them.  I'm sure the whole gloves would have given it better flavor but it's what I had.  While it roasted I chopped up  the onion and celery and got the fresh herbs ready.

Ingredients:

• 1 head of Cauliflower
• 1 medium onion
• 1 tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped finely
• 2 tsps. fresh thyme, chopped finely
• Celery, 2 ribs
• 3 Cloves of garlic
• 3 tbsps. EVOO
• 3½ cups chicken broth
• Salt & Pepper, to taste

Make:
Pre-heat the oven to 400°.   Break up pieces of cauliflower and toss into a large bowl.  Add in  garlic cloves and about 1tbsp of the EVOO, until well coated.  Season with salt & pepper, to taste. Place on a large baking sheet, in a single layer and place into oven.  Roast for about 20-30 mins, until lightly golden brown.  Set aside.
In a saucepan, heat the additional EVOO, over medium heat, add in onion and celery.  Sauté until tender, about 5-7 mins.  Add the roasted cauliflower, vegetable broth, thyme, and rosemary to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the cauliflower is tender, about 20-25 minutes.
With an immersion blender, blend until the soup is smooth. 

 Pour soup into bowls and season with a dash of paprika.  Enjoy!

 

 

This soup has a hearty consistency and fills you up fast.  We enjoyed it with a wonderful salad made with the fresh leafy lettuce we bought earlier in the day. Perfect ending to a perfect fall day.